Stamp-affixing machine



W. H. ASAY.

STAMP AFFIXING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 1 1. I917.

Patented June 10, 1919.

5 SHEETSSHEET I.

WITNESSES: l/VVENTUH c. KW flflL/flM/i is I I BY 5/ ATTORNEY PatelitedJune 10, 1919.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

WITNESSES 6 $$wn)4 A TTOR/VEY W. H. ASAY.

STAMP AFFIXING MACHlNE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 1 l. 1911,

1,306,459. Patented June 10, 1919.

5 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

WITNESSES.

C 4'. kw

A Hoe/v57 W. H. ASAY.

STAMP AFFIXING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED SEPT. I I. 1917.

' Patented J 11110 10, 19 19.

ssuzars-suzm 4 h mh WITNESSES.- c1 4 W WILLIAM H. ASAY, 0F ASBURY PARK,NEW JERSEY.

STAMP-AFFIXING MACHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented June 10, 1919.

Application filed September 11, 1917. Serial No. 190,836.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. ASAY, a citizen of the United States ofAmerica, residing at Asbury Park, in the county of Monmouth and State ofNew Jersey, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inStamp-Aliixing Machines, of which the following is a specification.

My present invention relatesto improvements in mail marking machines,and is designed for the purpose of producing a machine of this characterby means of which a stamp may be aflixed to the mail, and when themachine is used by the post oflice the stamp may later be canceled bythe utilization of the machine.

The primary object of the invention is to simplify the construction andoperation of machines of this type and so reduce their cost ofproduction and maintenance, and at the same time provide a durable andefficient machine for performing its required functions.

The invention consists in certain novel combinations and arrangements ofparts as hereinafter more fully described and claimed. In theaccompanying drawings I have illustrated one complete example of thephysical embodiment of my invention constructed and arranged accordingto the best mode I have so far devised for the practical application ofthe principles of my invention.

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a machine built according to myinvention.

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the machine.

Fig. 3 is a side elevation of the machine seen from the directionopposite to that of Fig. 2.

Fig. 1 is a front view of the machine.

Fig. .4? is a sectional detail showing the spring plate and itsconnections.

Fig. 5 is a rear view of the machine.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged, detail sectional view of a portion of the tableor machine top, a filler block being illustrated for use when themachine is used to afiix a stamp to a letter.

Fig. 7 is a view similar to Fig. 6, but showing an inking pad instead ofthe filler block, to be used when canceling mail or printing.

Fig. 8 is an enlarged detail View of part of the stamp-feeding andcutting or severing mechanism.

Fig. 9 is a sectional view showing the interior of the tank from whichwater is obtained to moisten the stamp previous to affixing.

Fig. 10 is a face view of a stamp or die that is used as a part of themachine.

Fig. 11 is a perspective'view showing the mail canceling die, and

Fig. 12 is a view of the same canceling die, but reversed.

I have preferred to illustrate the machine as manually operated, but itwill of course be understood that power may be applied to actuate themachine when desirable or required. The machine is com pactly arrangedand supported upon a flat table 1 of suitable size and material, andpreferably the supporting legs or posts 2 are'of sufficient length sothat the machine may be conveniently operated by the attendant using onehand to actuate the machine and the other hand to feed the mail matter,and a depressed corner 3 is provided, at the lower right hand corner inFig. 1; for the reception of the mail while it is being marked. Springtongues 4: and 5 are fixed to the table top to guide and retain the mailmatter, and the mail is adapted to rest upon a plate 6 located at thecorner of the table and hinged thereto at 7 so that it may act as aresilient support for the mail matter when being stamped or canceled, asupporting spring 8 fixed to the table and bearing up against theunderside ofthe plate giving the resilient support therefor.

The machine is operated by means of the actuating lever 9 which ispivoted at 10 to the table top,-and adapted to be pushed forward on itsworking stroke by grasping the handle 11 and swinging the lever forwardor toward the front of the machine. A pair of trunnions 12 and 13project laterally from the'actuating lever, of which the trunnion 12 iseffective for operating the inking or moistening mechanisms dependingupon which is being used. Thus the trunnion 12 co-acts with a slidebracket 14 which is formed with an L-shaped slot 15 having thedownwardly extending inclined portion 16 in which the trunnion restswhen the lever is in inoperative position. This'bracket 14 has a baseplate 17 parallel with the table and is slidable on the table betweenthe grooved guide ways 18, 18, fixed thereto. Thus it will be seen thatwhen the actuating lever is swung on its pivot the initial movement ofthe lever will cause the pin or trunnion 12 to shove the slide bracketforward and as the bracket moves forward the trunnion rises through theslot extension 16 and enters the slot 15. At the point of entering theslot 15 the forward movement of the sliding bracket ceases, but thelever will continue its movement and the trunnion will travel freely andwithout obstruction through the slot 15 to the end of its movement to bedescribed.

By means of the connecting rod 19 which is pivoted at 20 to the slidebracket 14, the motion of the actuating lever is conveyed forward to thebell crank lever 21, the lever being pivoted to the table at 22, and itslong arm is pivotally connected to the link 23 extending in direction atright angles to the connecting rod. This link is pivot-ally connected at24 to the horizontally disposed slide bracket 25 having its base plate26 guided in the fixed bracket 27 attached at the front edge of thetable, and it will be seen that as the bell crank lever is oscillated,the slide bracket will be reciprocated. The horizontal bracket 25 has aroller 28 journaled thereto at 29, and this roller is preferabhr made ofabsorbent material that will spread water across the face of the cornerof the envelop to be stamped preparatory to affixing the stamp. Thisroller is kept moistened from a water tank 30, pivoted at 31, 32, to thehead plate 33 of the machine, and within the tank a sponge 34 isinclosed. A pressure block or cork 35 may compress, or permit the spongeto expand, according to the position of the screw bar 36 threadedthrough the top of the tank, and it will readily be seen that when thesponge is compressed the water will not flow as freely through the spout37 as when the sponge is allowed to expand. The end of the spout isprovided with an absorbent wick 38, being retained by the screw'39, andfrom this wick the water is designed to drop to the absorbent roller.When at rest, the roller is directly beneath. the spout, and when not inuse the tank may be swung out of the way. Thus it will readily be seenthat, through the instrumentality of the actuating lever, the short andlong arms of the bell crank lever, and their connections, the roller ispassed quickly across the table and over the cor ner of a letter inorder to moisten the letter, remains stationary while the actuatinglever continues its movement through slot 15 as described in both aforward and reverse direction, and then at the end of its reversemovement the actuating lever swings its trunnion 12 down throughextension 16, and

the roller is brought back to normal posi-.

tion.

After the stamp-corner of the envelop or letter has been moistened bythe roller, the stamp is aiiixed, but of course is first fed beforefixing, and the stamp feeding device will now be described. The stampsare carried on a spool 40, in strips, and the strip passes down underthe guide roller 41 journaled onthe slide plate 42 which is pro videdwith tongue and groove connection in the open slot 43 of the table top,and adapted to reciprocate therein. The slide plate is reciprocatedthrough the trunnion 13 of the actuating lever, and in Fi g. 2 it willbe seen that a slotted bracket plate 44 co-acts with the trunnion, theplate rising from the slide plate 42 with which it is integral. A curvedslot 45 in the bracket plate has an inclined extension 46, in which thetrunnion 13 rests when in normal position, and in Fig. 2 it will be seenthat this extension is inclined in direction opposite to the extension16 of the slot 15. Now, when the lever 9 is moved forward it will beseen that the two slotted brackets 14 and 44 are moved forward by thetrunnions 12 and 13, but because of the inclination of the slots orextensions 16 and 45, the bracket 44 will move slower than the bracket14, in order that the envelop may be moistened before the stamp is fedto position for afiixing on the moistened part of the envelop. The stripof stamps is fed forward the distance of one stamp at each stroke of thelever 9, through the instrumentality of the telescoping flanged guideplate 47 in which the strip 48 iscarried, and this flanged guide platewhich is fixed on the slide plate 42 slides telescopically into thelarger flanged guide plate 49 fixed on the table 1. A pair of toothedpawls 50 and 51, the former on the slide plate 42 and the latter on thefixed table 1, are provided to assist in shoving the paper strip ofstamps forward. These pawls are shown in operative position, Fig. 2 andFig. 8, as permitting the stamp strip to move to the right, but by theirweight they prevent the reverse movement of the strip. If it is desiredthat the strip be not fed, or that the feed be thrown out of operation,the pawl 50 may be turned over to the left on its pivot 52 (Figs. 2 and8) so that when the slide plate 42 is moved by the lever 9 the strip mayslide back and forth under the smooth face of the pawl 50. The end stampof the strip is fed through an opening 53 in the head plate 33, inposition over the moistened part of the letter or envelop, and then thestamp is aflixed by the action of the head 54 on the plunger bar 55.

The stamp affixing head is also actuated from the lever 9, and theplunger bar 55 is adapted to reciprocate vertically being guided in itsmovement by the perforated this frame is provided with a pair of bosses61 traveling in the guide slot 62 in the head plate, so that the stampaffixing head is given a stable, regular, movement and guided by theplunger in the perforated boss 56 and by the bosses or pins 60 61 in theslotted head plate. The aflixing head is actuated through the medium ofa freely moving lever arm 62 pivoted at 63 to an OS- cillatable post 64which is in turn pivoted at 65 on the table top 1. The rear end of thislever arm passes through the bifurcated portion 66. of the actuatinglever- 9 and the end wall of this bifurcation bears at all times againstthe upper edge of the lever arm, the forward slotted end 67 of the armbeing held down by means of the spring 68 connected to the arm, andattached at 69 to the head plate. The slotted end of the lever arm isconnected to the carrier frame of the ailixing head by means of anantifriction roller 70 on the pin 60, and the slotted end of the armpasses through a slot 71 in the head plate and an open slot 72 in theframe.

The afiixing head is thus positively held up in normal position by thelever 9 bearing down on the lever arm against the tension of thecontractile spring 68, and the spring tends at all times to force downthe slotted end of the lever arm and with it the affixing head. The rearend of the lever arm has its upper edge in the form of a compound curveand it will readily be seen that when the lever 9 is turned to the leftin Fig. 3, the movement of the lever will permit the spring 68 to pulldown the slotted end of the lever arm and thus bring down the 'afiiX-ing head upon the stamp, after the envelop has been moistened, and thestamp is affixed.

The final step in the operation of the machine is to sever the stamp asit is attached or affixed to the envelop, and this cutting or severingof the stamp is also accomplished through the movement of the lever 9 onits forward or working stroke. After the lever has moved to the right inFig. 2 a suflicient distance to permit the lever arm to throw down theaffixing head, the continued movement of the lever brings it against aroller 7 3, j ournaled on the lever arm adjacent the V oscillatable post64, and the roller is so positioned that the combined movemept of theoperating lever, lever arm, and dscillatable post is such that at thefinal action of the parts the roller is in contact with both theactuating lever and the oscillatable post as an anti-friction member andthis final action thus swings the post 64 toward the front of themachine so that its forked arm 74 will ride down the roller 75 on theslidable knife head 76 which is moved in the slot or opening 53 of thehead plate against the tension of the contractile spring 77 attached tothe post and to the stamp feed slide plate 42 at 78. The movement of theslide plate 42 is limited and ceases before the cutting movement isinitiated and after the lever 9 isactuated the spring makes a flexibleconnection between the parts eliminating any jerky movements. Theknife-head is guided in the head plate by the usual tongue and grooveconnection, and the head carries a knife 79 with an obliquely arrangedcut-' that strips of tickets, or other articles'may be substituted forthe stamps if desired and issued in the same manner as the stamps areissued.

Instead of using the stamp affixing head,

a die 83 may be attached to the plunger e bar and the name and addressmay printed on an envelop or sheet of paper. In this instance the stampfeed will be cut out and the feed of water from the tank will also bestopped, the tank itself being turned on its pivots out of the way. Inusing the printing die or stamp the plate 84 and its backing 85, as usedto close up the socket 86 in the table top (see Fig. 6) when aflixingstamps, is removed, and an ink well 87 with a filler 88 and inking pad89 are substituted for the plate 84 so that the roller 28 becomes aninking roller and when operated, passes under the die or address stampand inks it before it strikes the envelop.

The device may also be used to cancel postage stamps in a post office,and for this purpose the canceling head 90 may be attached to theplunger bar by means of the socket 91 in manner well understood.

From the foregoing description taken in connection with the drawings itis evident that the elements of the combined machine are actuated fromthe single member (lever) to perform four successive and relatedfunctions 2'. e. moistening the mail matter to be stamped which isaccomplished by the roller 28, then feeding the stamp, next retainingand affixing the stamp on the mail matter, and finally cutting orsevering the stamp from its strip, as described.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim is v 1. Thecombination in a stamp affixing machine of a head plate and a carrierframe movable thereon and a stamp afiixing head carried by the frame, anactuating lever, a pivoted arm engaging said lever and carrier, andmeans operable when the lever is actuated for moving said lever arm tooperate the aflixing head.

. and the other bracket.

3. The combination in a stamp afiixing machine, of an actuating leverand a stamp feeding device and an envelop moistening device and meanswhereby the moistening device and feeding device are successivelyoperated by a single stroke of the lever, said moistening deviceincluding a pair of cooperating slide brackets connected With theactuating lever and a moistening roller carried by one of the slidebrackets, a bell crank connected to one of the brackets and a connectingrod between the bell crank and the other bracket.

4. The combination in a stamp affixing machine, of an actuating leverhaving trunforming part of the operating mechanism of each device, andsaid trunnions engaging the slotted slide brackets whereby said devicesare successively operated by a single stroke of the lever.

5. The combination with the supporting table and a reciprocable stampaffixing head and operating means therefor, of a hinged plate forming adepressible portion to the table, a supporting spring. for the platefixed to the table providing a resilient support for the mail matter tobe stamped and a spring tongue on the table projectingv over the plateto retain the mail matter.

6. The combination in a stamp affixing machine of a head plate andcarrier frame movable thereon and a stamp affixing head carried by theframe, a slotted spring actuated pivoted arm guided in the head plate,and a bifurcated actuating lever bearing on the free end of the arm,whereby when the actuating lever is operated the affixing head isactuated by its spring.

In testimony whereof I afliX my signature.

WVILLIAM H. ASAY.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe, Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. G.

